


Up on the Rooftop

by saltwaterselkie



Category: Happiest Season (2020)
Genre: F/F, Fluff, Marriage Proposal, One Shot, POV Abby, Romantic Fluff, and it's all very cute i promise, riley abby and jane are friends ok?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-06
Updated: 2020-12-06
Packaged: 2021-03-09 20:16:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,610
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27922126
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/saltwaterselkie/pseuds/saltwaterselkie
Summary: Abby plans a proposal :)
Relationships: Abby Caldwell & Riley Johnson, Abby Holland & Jane Caldwell, Abby Holland & John (Happiest Season), Harper Caldwell/Abby Holland, Jane Caldwell & Riley Johnson
Comments: 18
Kudos: 74





	Up on the Rooftop

**Author's Note:**

  * For [RenLuthor](https://archiveofourown.org/users/RenLuthor/gifts).



> Enjoy a short piece of Harper/Abby fluff feat. our incredible ensemble cast! Thanks to RennyWilson for the request.

Abby planned the proposal with, of all people, Jane and Riley.

They’d gotten closer after Christmas, she and Riley. They’d made such a solid connection over only a few days that Abby had been half worried that it would fall apart as soon as the… Christmas magic, or whatever, was sucked out of the air.

She shouldn’t have been worried. By the time she and Harper got back to Pittsburgh, she was texting Riley almost as much as John (which, _wow_ , that happened fast.) And two weeks into January, when everything felt normal again and yet so much _newer_ , too, Abby brought it up to Harper.

They were eating breakfast. Abby glanced at Harper, scooping cereal into her mouth. In between bites, she dropped the name casually. “Hey. When was the last time you actually talked to Riley?”

Harper got that look on her face, the one where she seemed guarded and ready to deal with whatever Abby was going to bring up at the same time. “Um… before Christmas? A… a long time ago.”

“She told me about what happened when you were younger.” Abby tried not to sound too accusatory; she focused more on her cereal than on Harper, because _now_ the look on Harper’s face was a mixed-up mess of guilt and… something else. Something Abby couldn’t quite place.

“I’m sorry,” Harper said, her voice quiet. “I should’ve told you.”

This was the kind of moment Abby lived for – when she felt like she understood Harper better than herself. Because Harper was her _person_ , and Harper was being vulnerable, and Abby knew exactly why. “Hey,” she said, reaching out to place her hand atop Harper’s, “I already got my apologies.” (After the second chance, there had been many words from Harper’s end – because she was a writer, and words were what she _did_ – and afterwards, a time of much fewer words in which they made up.) “But you know… I’m probably not the one you should be saying sorry to.”

Harper met with Riley that weekend. They both drove halfway from their respective towns and had coffee. Abby didn’t know exactly what happened, but when Riley texted her afterwards, it was a simple “we good,” and when Harper came in the front door, she was smiling.

<><><>

Riley suggested wintertime, to maintain the holiday theme; Jane, when Abby asked her for advice, first squealed for a solid twenty seconds and then said she thought spring would be best. John staunchly refused to give any input, maintaining his stance that marriage was a patriarchal institution that would fit better in the “days of old” than in modern America.

Abby split the difference: she decided on a summer proposal. Jane confirmed that Harper still had no idea. From what Abby could tell, Harper and Jane had started talking a lot more – they had weekly calls, now. Abby herself had started texting Jane soon after Christmas – Abby _was_ an art history PhD student, after all, and she had to admit she’d been impressed by Jane’s painting. Sure, you could call it a little kitchy, but from what she could tell, Jane didn’t have any formal training. Jane had just done what Jane did: decided she wanted to be excellent at something and gotten there by herself.

Like with the book. Which John described as “a fantastical literary triumph on the level of Tolkien. Except with _far_ more speaking roles for women.”

Abby had a stroke of genius when she started a group chat with Riley and Jane. She’d been almost sure it was a bad idea, but as it turned out, the chemistry between the three was excellent. Riley’s dry wit played off of Jane’s enthusiasm, and Abby herself was there to even out the ground between the two.

That groupchat was the grounds for Abby’s Proposal Planning 101. They went through so many different ideas that they spiraled out of control in Abby’s head. Jane suggested a grand gesture; Riley said that a public proposal could send the wrong signals. Riley dropped the idea that Abby could just do it at dinner one day; Jane shot _that_ idea down with a long spiel about the values of romance and big moments.

And then they decided on one that they liked. Jane suggested it, Riley toned it down, and Abby had only one thing to say: “it’s perfect.”

<><><>

It was the Fourth of July, hot and muggy, and Abby took Harper to a roof.

This time, it wasn’t the roof of some random lady having her own version of holiday fun. Abby had scouted out the house beforehand – it was an Airbnb and hadn’t been booked for the night, so Abby had booked it herself. She had Harper close her eyes on the drive over; when they arrived, Abby hopped out and opened the door for Harper, giddiness building in her chest. “C’mon, slowpoke,” she teased.

“Okay, okay! Have a little patience.” Harper extricated herself from the car, a smile dancing on her face. And raised an eyebrow at the house. “Where—”

Abby grabbed her hand and tugged. “You did this to _me_ last time, if you’ll remember. Your turn to get dragged along for something you didn’t sign up for.”

The house had a window that opened out onto the roof, as advertised. Abby climbed through it, situating herself where she had a good view to the east, and waited as Harper clambered out. The sunset was just fading, but they could still see the wisps of it trailing pink and orange through the sky. Abby could see the park just a little way away; perfect distance.

Fireworks were starting to pop and crackle across the city with greater frequency. Abby surreptitiously checked her phone. A text from Riley said she, Jane, and John were ready.

Abby texted, _two minutes_.

And then she turned to Harper.

“Remember the last time we were on a roof like this,” Harper was looking out across the city, something wistful in her eyes. “God, that was amazing. Except for the part where I thought you’d dropped off the side and broken your back.”

“Except for that part,” Abby agreed. She wondered if Harper could see the excitement shining through Abby’s whole body. “Harper Caldwell.”

_That_ got Harper’s attention. Abby never used her real name, and they both knew it. Harper looked at Abby, quizzical. “What?”

“You are the most fantastically lovely, smart, and kind person I’ve ever known,” Abby said, her voice soft. She could see the realization creeping into Harper’s eyes, slow but sure. “I’ve wanted to do this for a long time, Harper. I was… man, I was planning it on Christmas morning, but I think it’s better that I waited, because the longer I held off, the sweeter I knew this was gonna be, you know? But…” _damn_ , was she tearing up? Unexpected and unwarranted. She licked her lips and finished. “But you are my _person_ , Harper, you are _my person_ , and I never want to be with anyone other than you.”

She was almost worried, for the briefest of moments, that she’d left the ring box in the car – but no, there it was, shoved to the bottom of the pockets in her shorts (men’s shorts were such a godsend when it came to pocket depth). She tried not to fumble it as she pulled it out.

And then Harper saw it, and her hands went to her mouth, her eyes sparkling. “Abby…”

“Harper Caldwell, you’re my person. Harper Caldwell, I’m in love with you. Harper Caldwell… will you marry me?”

Perhaps a roof wasn’t the best place for this proposal, because they both nearly fell off of it when Harper threw herself towards Abby, kissing her with the force of a tidal wave. Somehow, it was still incredibly sexy. Abby wound her free hand in Harper’s hair, doing her best not to let go of the ring box, and in the best timing to ever happen in the history of timings, Jane, Riley, and John set off their fireworks in the park.

A rainbow of colors exploded above the parks. A literal rainbow. Abby had thought it might be too much, but Jane had insisted, and Riley had, for once, agreed wholeheartedly.

Harper drew back, her eyes going to the sky. “Abby… are those…”

“For us? Yup. Your girlfriend knows how to go all out.”

Harper shook her head, a smile playing on the corners of her mouth. “You’re lying.”

“Uh… no, I’m really not. It’s John and Jane and Riley handling the fireworks – we bought ‘em all together and—”

“Not about the fireworks, silly.” Harper tapped a single finger between Abby’s collarbones, which made it, all of a sudden, very difficult to breathe. “You’re not my girlfriend.”

“No?”

Harper grinned. “You’re my _fiancée_. Because as per your previous question… the answer is yes.”

“You and me,” Abby said, and she really _really_ couldn’t look away – Harper was just that damn beautiful.

“You. Me.” Harper kissed her again, short and sweet. “Now, _please_ , Abby, put that ring on my finger so I can go show Jane. I think she might pass out.”

<><><>

In the first book of the spinoff series to Jane’s novel, two characters consummate their love on a rooftop during a sweltering day. When Riley confronted her about it (surprisingly, Riley had found herself liking the books far more than she would ever admit in polite company), Jane shrugged and said, “artistic license.”

Harper and Abby had been married for a year by then, after all. It wasn’t like borrowing a detail from their engagement was going to change anything.

No. It wouldn’t change anything at all.


End file.
